13,000 Australian LIVE EXPORT animals stricken at sea:

LiveExport – GlobalVoice4Animals

Latest news on the Ocean Outback indicates it is being held well out to sea (about 110 km), west of Perth.

The sea conditions in the area are moderate to rough, and temperatures are high, all of which is not very good at all for the welfare of the animals.

Of course, the exporter’s spokesman continues to report that it’s all good on board, along with the broken record like announcements about the so called excellent ventilation characteristics of the ship. However, the facts are not changed by his childish propaganda. Animals are dying. It should be noted that the ship went well beyond 50 km out, so far out that, at one point, it seriously looked like it was being taken out of the Australian Exclusive Economic Zone, which is 320 km out. No doubt a main reason to go so far out would have been to get rid of the evidence of the deaths.

This is day 11 of this sorry saga, and nothing of substance has progressed. The ship is not going to the Middle East, realistically it can’t in its present condition. It can really only make it to a South East Asian destination, but sheep are not wanted there. So, no matter what, the sheep will have to be taken off this ship.

The Ocean Drover is currently less than 2 days north of Perth en route to Portland, Victoria. It’s possible that it could be diverted to Fremantle as part of a possible the contingency plan, but that would take several days, and the load would be well below its carrying capacity. We also believe that mixing the stranded consignment (which no longer has a permit to be sent to Israel) with others would be out of the question due mainly to quarantine rules. The upshot is, we don’t believe the Ocean Drover will be used as a replacement ship.

There is another livestock ship, the Lincoln Express, which has rather suspiciously been moored off the coast of Fremantle for several days now. It is possible that it is in the process of being chartered as a replacement vessel, however, as we mentioned earlier, to our knowledge, there is no longer a destination for the stranded consignment.

This is dragging on and on, and there is no relief in sight for the animals.

We will continue to be bombarded with all the usual spin from the industry about how good the conditions are on this ship. But have a good look at this photo (courtesy of Animals Australia)…it graphically shows the filth the animals are being kept in. It was taken only on day 7 of this fiasco, we are now at day 11. Bear in mind that this only shows the edge of the vessel, it would have been much worse internally. This is from the operator whose management continually announces to the world that it is the best of any of them and animal welfare is its priority. Well, if this is the best, and if this is its standard of animal welfare ‘priority’, it speaks volumes about the animal welfare standards of the whole industry.

We also have to ask why it is that this industry is able to refuse RSPCA inspections, and why it is that they can dictate there own terms, in particular the timing, of any inspections it might begrudgingly agree to? It’s thoroughly indicative of a whitewash and a cover up. As a result of the 2011 revelations on 4 Corners, the industry promised that things would immediately change, that it would comply with community expectations, and that the situation had heralded in a new dawn of transparency, so that the public could have confidence that things really had changed. Well, since that time, the opposite has been the case, and in fact, its getting more and more opaque. Of course, there is a good reason for this; it simply cannot allow transparency, because that would expose the truth of the inherent, systemic cruelty of the trade.

We’d like to raise one more point of observation for now; there is an extraordinary lack of coverage of this obvious and developing animal welfare crisis on the part of Australia’s media. There have been a few narrow, brief articles here and there, all of which insist on prominently promulgating the industry’s repetitive, lengthy and patronising spin, but there has been no effort made by any media outlet to pursue, for themselves, the actual truth. That is an abject journalistic failure, and it is one of the main reasons this cruel industry still exists in this country.

Shame Australia, shame shame shame!

Here’s a typical example, but note the photo in it of conditions in a pen on the ship. It would have been selected as a better one to show by this pro live export rag, yet it is still shows how filthy things are!

TO GET INVOLVED AND TAKE ACTION:

Dear Mark

Sorry for the lack of communication over the debacle that is the Ocean Outback – it has been a hectic week and most of our outreach now is through facebook. 13,000 animals set sail for brutal slaughter in Israel’s Dabbah abattoir on 29 December last year after loading on the 28th and 29th at Fremantle Port. They returned to anchorage off Fremantle on the 30th and 11 days after the first animals were loaded, suffering temperatures even exceeding 40 degrees, they are still on there, apart from the (reported) 12 sheep and two cattle who have died so far – the lucky ones. As this is written, they still sit off the coast of Fremantle in limbo.

Please join Stop Live Exports in protesting loudly at the abhorrent treatment the victims of this trade suffer abroad AND here.

Mark Pearson, Animal Justice Party NSW MP is flying over to join us – Mark is a long time animal activist, once heading up Animal Liberation NSW and is only the second person IN THE WORLD, to be elected to Parliament on an animal protection platform.

WHERE: on the dock in front of E Shed markets, where the Rottnest Ferry leaves from

WHEN: THIS Sunday 10 January at 11.00 amFORECAST: 26 degrees and partly cloudy FAMILY FRIENDLYPLENTY OF PARKING AND 5 MINUTE WALK FROM FREMANTLE TRAIN STATION

Bring your own signs and banners if you want, and we will have plenty there as well.

Please remember to cover up and leave your fur friends at home if it is hot – the forecast is for a perfect 26 and partly cloudy, but check on the day!

See you there – for the animals!

Katrina Love – Campaign Manager

SAV Comment – At least this subhuman and live export supporter is past history now !